ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
States of Punjab and Haryana contribute a major share in the procurement of wheat
Chandigarh, May 25, 2020
States of Punjab and Haryana contribute a major share in the procurement of wheat. As on 24.05.2020, Out of total of 341.56 Lakh Metric Tonnes  wheat procured by the government agencies, 125.84 LMT and 70.65 LMT were procured from Punjab and Haryana respectively. It is 0.12 LMT for Chandigarh and 0.03 LMT for Himachal Pradesh.
To ensure that agricultural operations keep going, relaxations were provided for agricultural activities during the lockdown. Number of purchase centers were increased substantially to reduce the farmer footfalls in individual purchase centers to make procurement done in a safe manner during the pandemic. New centers were set up using every facility available at gram panchayat level and the numbers were increased sharply in the major procuring states like Punjab where it went up from 1836 to 3681 and 599 to 1800 in Haryana. Using technology, farmers were provided specific dates and slots to bring their produce which helped in avoiding overcrowding.
Commission agent, Nachater Singh from Punjab said that the lifting of wheat by the government agencies has been very smooth and the entire payment for the same has been received from the government which has been further passed onto the farmers.

https://twitter.com/PIBChandigarh/status/1264796535109238785?s=09

As the lockdown is extended till 31st May 2020, the Ministry of Home Affairs has provided further relaxation for the resumption of commercial activities. Welcoming this move, a trader in Chandigarh said that these relaxations are big relief for them and it is everyone’s responsibility to follow the precautions and government norms regarding COVID-19.

https://twitter.com/PIBChandigarh/status/1262979070985302016?s=09
Ministry of Jal Shakti
Ms Vini Mahajan Assumes Charge as Secretary, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department Of Drinking Water and Sanitation
Ms Vini Mahajan, IAS  assumed the charge as Secretary in the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, here today. Ms. Mahajan is an MBA from Indian Institute of Management  Calcutta, where she was placed on the Roll of Honour. She did B.A.  Economics from Lady Shri Ram College , Delhi University.
Prior to this, she was serving as Punjab Chief Secretary from 26th June 2020. Earlier she served as Additional Chief Secretary of the Departments of Housing & Urban Development, Government of Punjab and Industries & Commerce, IT and Investment Promotion. She was ACS/ Principal Secretary of the Department of Health and Family Welfare since April 2012 for 5 years. She also served as Principal Secretary Department of Medical Education and Research, and Principal Secretary Finance, Punjab.
Ms Mahajan served as Joint Secretary to the Prime Minister of India from 2007-2012, and earlier in 2004-05 as Director in the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance.
She has served in various capacities in the State of Punjab, as M.D. of the Punjab Infrastructure Development Board, as the first Director Disinvestment in the State, as Secretary, Power and as Special Secretary, Expenditure. She has over 8 years' experience in cutting edge positions at the field level, including as Deputy Commissioner .
Ms Mahajan received numerous academic awards, including the National Talent Search Scholarship. She was a Hubert Humphrey fellow based at American University in Washington DC in 2000 –2001.
Ministry of Science & Technology
Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh says, India’s spending on Research and Development  is consistently increasing in last 10 years and has increased nearly tripled from Rs. 39,437.77 crore in 2007-08 to Rs. 1,13,825.03 crore in 2017-18.
Union Minister of State, PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Minister of State  Science & Technology, M/o Earth Sciences; MoS, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh said that India ranks 6th globally in R&D investment in terms of US$ Purchasing Power Parity . He added that as per the latest available statistics, India’s spending on Research and Development  is consistently increasing in last 10 years and has increased nearly tripled from Rs. 39,437.77 crore in 2007-08 to Rs. 1,13,825.03 crore in 2017-18.
In a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today, Dr. Jitendra Singh said the Government has been making sincere efforts to enhance the R&D expenditure and create adequate opportunities for the researchers that include the competitive extramural funding schemes. He added that the government has also taken several steps to increase opportunities for research students pursuing Ph.D. and Post-Doctoral research.
Dr Jitendra Singh further mentioned that the Science and Engineering Research Board  has recently taken a decision to increase the number of Post-Doctoral Fellowships  from 300 annually to 1000. In addition, the SERB-Ramanujan Fellowship, SERB-Ramalingaswami re-entry Fellowship and SERB-Visiting Advanced Joint Research Faculty Scheme , etc., have been devised to promote brain gain by attracting bright researchers of Indian origin to work and contribute to STI ecosystem in India.
Ministry of Finance
Presentation made by Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman under Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan to support Indian economy in fight against COVID-19
Click here for the detail PPT
Ministry of Home Affairs
Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah pays tributes to Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee on his birth anniversary
Once a permit had to be obtained to enter Jammu and Kashmir, Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee sacrificed his life to work for one nation, one Constitution, one flag, ending the permit raj from Kashmir and made it an integral part of India
We will always be indebted to Dr. Mukherjee for this struggle and sacrifice
Dr. Mukherjee was a unique thinker who believed that the basic purpose of power is not to rule but to work with a dedicated spirit for nation-building
His philosophy of cultural nationalism and the idea of adopting policies according to the original culture of India will always guide us
Union Home and Cooperation Minister Shri Amit Shah has paid tributes to Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee on his birth anniversary. Paying tributes to Dr. Mukherjee through tweets, the Union Home Minister said that at one time a permit was required to enter Jammu and Kashmir. Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee sacrificed his life to work for of one nation, one constitution, one flag, ending permit raj from Kashmir and making it an integral part of India. We will always be indebted to Dr. Mukherjee for this struggle and sacrifice.
Shri Amit Shah said Dr. Mukherjee was a unique thinker who believed that the basic purpose of power is not to rule, but to work with a dedicated spirit for nation-building. His philosophy of cultural nationalism and the idea of adopting policies according to the original culture of India will always guide us.
At one time a permit had to be obtained to enter Jammu and Kashmir. Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee sacrificed his life to work for one nation, one Constitution, one flag, ending permit raj from Kashmir and making it an integral part of India.
Ministry of Drinking Water & Sanitation
Swachh Survekshan Grameen launched in UP, Jharkhand and Maharashtra
The Swachh Survekshan Grameen 2018  announced by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation on July 13th, 2018, was launched by three States this week.
Under the SSG 2018, an independent survey agency will conduct the survey in all districts from 1st to 31st August 2018, and the results will be announced in the form of a ranking of all districts and States on the basis of quantitative and qualitative sanitation  parameters. The top performing States and Districts are expected to be awarded on 2nd October 2018.
Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, launched the SSG in Lucknow today. Speaking at the occasion, the Chief Minister called upon the people of Uttar Pradesh to step out and clean their villages and surrounding areas with pride, underscoring the importance of Swachhata for health and dignity of the people of Uttar Pradesh. He said that the SSG was a golden opportunity for the people to come together and make Swachhata a daily habit across villages of UP.
Earlier today, the Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Shri Raghubar Das, launched the Survekshan in Ranchi. Speaking at the occasion, the CM asked the people of Jharkhand to ensure that the State gets the top position in the Grameen Survekshan just as it did in the Urban Swachh Survekshan. He asked District Officials to popularise the survey and ensure that people are aware of the survekshan and participate actively in it, through an intensive communication campaign launched in the State.
Earlier this week, Shri Babanrao Lonikar, Cabinet Minister, Water Supply and Sanitation Department, Government of Maharashtra, launched SSG 2018 in Maharashtra at an event in Pandharpur. At the launch, he appealed to the Gram Panchayats of Maharashtra to prepare for an excellent performance during the Survekshan. He recalled the great tradition of the State in making social campaigns successful through active community participation and called upon the one million Varkaris gathered at Pandharpur on the occasion of Aashadhi Ekadashi to play a leadership role in this.
Secretary, Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Shri Parameswaran Iyer, was also present at the launch in Lucknow. Speaking at the launch, he said that the objective of SSG 2018 is to undertake a ranking of States and Districts on the basis of their performance attained on key quantitative and qualitative SBM-G parameters. In the process, through a countrywide communication campaign, rural communities will be engaged in the improvement of the sanitation and cleanliness of their surrounding areas.
As part of Swachh Survekshan Grameen 6980 villages in 698 districts across India will be covered. 34,000 public places namely schools, anganwadis, public health centres, haat/bazaars/religious places in these 6980 villages will be visited for survey. Citizens’ feedback will be collected from over 50 lakh citizens on SBM related issues through direct interaction as well as online feedback.
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Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
Top stars expected to join the campaign for environment protection
Prakash Javadekar to plant sapling in premises of Films Division in Mumbai tomorrow
Union Minister Shri Prakash Javadekar will carry forth the drive to spread awareness about environment protection through the newly launched #SelfieWithSapling campaign by planting a sapling in the premises of Films Division in Mumbai tomorrow. He will also take a tour of the National Museum of Indian Cinema, which was inaugurated by the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi earlier this year in January. During the visit, he will also be interacting with top stars from the Film Industry to exhort them to take the campaign forward in order to spread the message of sustainability, importance of reduction of carbon footprint and significance of environment protection for future generations.
Earlier today, on the occasion of World Environment Day, Shri Javadekar planted a sapling in the premises of Paryavaran Bhawan in New Delhi, where he was joined by ace cricketer Shri Kapil dev, renowned actors Shri Jackie Shroff and Shri Randeep Hooda and famous folk singer Ms. Malini Awasthi.
President's Secretariat
President of India Pays Homage to Dr Shanker Dayal Sharma on his Birth Anniversary
The President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu paid homage to Dr Shanker Dayal Sharma, former President of India, on his birth anniversary at Rashtrapati Bhavan today .
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Hospitals With New Oxygen Plants
The Government has sanctioned 1563 Pressure Swing Adsorption  oxygen generation plants with capacity of around 2000 MT has been set up in public health facilities across the country. These include 1225 PSA plants which have been installed and commissioned under PMCARES Fund in every district of the country. Additionally, 281 PSA Plants are being set up by PSUs of Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Ministry of Power, Ministry of Coal, Ministry of Railways and 57 PSA plants have been received under Foreign grants. The States have also been asked to install PSA plants in public health facilities and facilitate installation of PSA plants in private health facilities. The National Medical Commission has also amended the Minimum Requirements for Annual MBBS Admission Regulations, 2020 to make it mandatory for all medical colleges to install PSA plants.
The Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare, Dr Bharati Pravin Pawar stated this in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
Ministry of Culture
Ministry of Culture promotes Indian Folk Arts and Culture abroad through ‘Global Engagement Scheme’ with the aim to promote the rich and diverse culture of India
Ministry of Culture promotes Indian Folk Arts and Culture abroad through Global Engagement Scheme under which Festivals of India are organized in other countries showcasing folk art and other cultural events such as exhibitions/dance/music/theatre/ film & food festivals, yoga events etc. including rich and diverse culture of North-East India.
Ministry of Culture also provides grant-in-aid to Indo-Foreign Friendship Cultural Societies for organizing programmes and activities for promoting the rich and diverse culture of India including North East India across the world.
Schemes such as Award to Young Talented Artistes, Guru Shishya Parampara, Theatre Rejuvenation, Research & Documentation, Shilpgram, OCTAVE and National Cultural Exchange Programme are also applicable to North East. OCTAVE is the special scheme applicable to North East Zones. Yuva Sangam programme are also arranged in which 11 Higher Education Institutions from NE States are linked to 14 from other States.
Under this programme, exposure visits of youth  are being organized between the 8 NE States and other States. Multi-dimensional exposure is given to the youth during these visits under five broad areas – Paryatan , Parampara , Pragati , Prodyogik  and Paraspar Sampark .
This reply was given by Minister of Culture, Tourism and Development of North Eastern Region Shri G Kishan Reddy in Rajya Sabha today.
Ministry of Finance
Cabinet approves Mutual Recognition Arrangement of Authorised Economic Operators between India and Australia
The Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has approved the signing and ratification of the Mutual Recognition Arrangement  between the Central Board of Indirect taxes and Customs , Department of Revenue, Government of India and the Department of Home Affairs incorporating the Australian Border Force, Australian Government.
The arrangement is aimed at providing reciprocal benefits to accredited and trusted exporters of both the signatories in the clearance of goods by the Customs authorities of the importing country. Mutual recognition of Authorized Economic Operators is a key element of the World Customs Organisation’s SAFE Framework of Standards to secure and facilitate global trade to strengthen end-to-end security of supply chains while providing higher facilitation to trade at the global level. This arrangement shall benefit our exporters to Australia and thereby promote a trade relationship between the two countries.
Mutual Recognition of the Australian Trusted Trader Program in Australia and the Authorized Economic Operator Program in India shall enter into force from the date of signing by the authorized representatives of both the countries. The text of the proposed Mutual Recognition Arrangement has been finalized with the concurrence of the Customs Administrations of both the countries.
Ministry of Defence
Clarification in respect of non-disbursement of pension to Armed Forces personnel for April 2022
There have been concerns raised in sections of media and social media regarding the non-disbursement of pension to defence pensioners for the month of April 2022. The following clarification is being hereby issued for kind information of all concerned.
All pensioners must complete annual identification in order to continue receipt of monthly pension, which is usually done in the month of November 2021 by all banks acting as Pension Disbursing Agencies. Due to the COVID situation, Government had extended the window for annual identification due on November 30, 2021 upto March 31, 2022.
Accordingly, SPARSH has been successfully disbursing monthly pension to over five lakh pensioners, including 4.47 lakh pensioners migrated from legacy system to SPARSH  upto March 31, 2022.
However, during the processing of pension for the month of April 2022, it came to light that annual identification of around 3.3 lakh pensioners was not updated. A list was shared with all Pension Disbursing Banks to share updated identification data, if any, and as a result identification status of more than 2.65 lakh pensioners was updated on SPARSH by April 25, 2022 leading to successful processing of pension for all these pensioners.
However, banks  could not confirm identification for 58,275 pensioners and neither was their identification received directly on SPARSH by the time of monthly closing. Hence, these pensioners were not paid their April pension by April 30, 2022.
In order to avoid hardship to such pensioners, a one-time special waiver has been accorded to these 58,275 pensioners to get their identification done by May 25, 2022.
The pension for the month of April 2022 has now been processed and pension is due to be credited by end-of-day on May 04, 2022. All such pensioners are being informed about pending annual identification through SMS and email.
For performing identification pensioners are requested to approach nearest CSC  and get their annual identification updated through Jeevan Pramaan using SPARSH PPO number and selecting PDA as SPARSH PCDA .
The Ministry of Defence, including the Defence Accounts Department, is undergoing a major transformation with an aim to bring transparency and efficiency in various processes and procedures. With the broader agenda of digitisation and modernisation of legacy systems, the System for Pension Administration   as an initiative of Ministry of Defence was envisaged to provide comprehensive solution to the administration of pension to the defence pensioners in line with the Government’s vision of Digital India, Direct Benefit Transfer  and Minimum Government, Maximum Governance.
The SPARSH Portal may be accessed at https://sparsh.defencepension.gov.in/.
Special Service and Features
STAFF SELECTION COMMISSION
CONSTABLE  IN CAPFs, SSF, RIFLEMAN  IN ASSAM RIFLES AND SEPOY IN NCB EXAMINATION 2022
Staff Selection Commission will be conducting “Constable  in CAPFs, SSF, Rifleman  in Assam Rifles and Sepoy in NCB Examination 2022”in Computer Based Mode.In Southern Region, 369376 candidates have been admitted for the examination. The Examination will be held in 21 Venues at 20 Centres/Citiesviz. Guntur, Kurnool, Rajahmundry, Tirupati, Vishakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Kakinada, Nellore, Chirala, Vizianagaramin Andhra Pradesh; Hyderabad, Warangal,Karimnagarin Telangana and Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem, Tiruchirapalli, Tirunelveli, Vellore in Tamil Nadu.
2. In Southern Region, the examination will be held for 19 daysfrom 10.01.2023 to13.02.2023.There will be 4 Shiftsper day – 1st Shift from 09:00 AM to 10:00 AM, 2nd Shift from 11:45 AM to 12:45 PM, 3rd Shift from 02:30 PM to 03:30 PM and 4th Shift from 05:15 to 06:15 PM.
3. Facility to download e-Admission Certificates will be provided in our website  in such a way that candidates can download the same ONLY 4 DAYS BEFORE THEIR ACTUAL DATE OF EXAMINATION AND ALL THE SUBSEQUENT DAYS TILL THEIR DATE OF EXAMINATION. These details are also intimated to the candidates through SMS to their mobile numbers and through e-mail to their e-mail IDs as provided by them in their Online Applications.
4. PROHIBITED ITEMS such as watches, books, paper chits, magazines, electronic gadgets  are STRICTLY NOT ALLOWED in the examination hall. If any such item is found to be in possession of a candidate in the examination hall, his/her candidature is liable to be cancelled and legal/criminal proceedings could be initiated against him/her. He/she would also be liable to be debarred from appearing in future examinations of the Commission for a period of 3–7 years. Candidates are, therefore, strictly advised not to bring prohibited items and bags into the Examination Venue.
5. Candidates are further requested to note that they shall not be permitted to attend the examination without e-Admission Certificate and Original Valid Identity Proof as enumerated in the Instructions attached with e-Admission Certificate. All candidates are, therefore, requested to download their e-Admission Certificate without fail. For further queries/clarifications, candidates may contact Southern Regional Office Helpline Numbers .
6. The Commission has taken necessary precautions in view of COVID-19 and the candidates are requested to follow the instructions given in e-Admission Certificate regarding COVID-19 scrupulously for safe and smooth conduct of Examination, according to a press release issued by K.Nagaraja, Regional Director, Staff Selection Commission .
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Prime Minister's Office
Prime Minister says Government fully vigilant on situation due to COVID - 19
Urges people not to panic and avoid non-essential travel
No Union Minister to travel abroad in the upcoming days
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said the Government is fully vigilant about the situation due to the COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus.
In a tweet today, the Prime Minister said the Ministries and States have taken various proactive steps to ensure safety of all.
He urged people to not panic and avoid non-essential travel and large gatherings.
Prime Minister further said that no Minister of the Central Government will travel abroad in the upcoming days.
PIB Headquarters
Special Coaching Scheme under Shorthand for SC/ST: applications invited
The National Career Service Centre for SC/ST, 3rd Floor, Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board Building, 56, Santhome High Road, Chennai-600 004,  under M/o Labour & Employment, DGE, Government of India, inviting proposals from reputed firms/Institutions of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, for imparting the DGE sponsored scheme of 26th Phase Special Coaching Scheme under Shorthand to 60 SC/ST candidates. Interested Institutes/Firms need to meet the following criteria such as well-trained faculties, training infrasture, location etc.
The Selected institute will impart training in  General Awareness,  General English  Numerical Ability,  Shorthand and Typing,  Basic Knowledge in Computer in order to make the eligible SC/ST educated Job Seeker of Tamil Nadu viable for facing the different Competitive Examinations. The selected Institues/ Firms will be paid professional Charges of Rs.800/- per candidate per month.
The interested institutions/Firms may apply to the Sub-Regional Employment Officer, NATIONAL CAREER SERVICE CENTRE FOR SC/ST, CHENNAI  3rd Floor, Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board Building, 56, Santhome High Road, Chennai-600 004  on or before 20th June 2019.
The details are informed by the Sub-Regional Employment Officer, NCSC for SC/ST, Chennai in a press release.